I could hire every producer in Hollywood - 2,000 producers, let's say - and they couldn't come up with all the soap operas, in season and out of season, that NFL programming gives television.

Is [football] for everybody? Of course not. But it is a meaningful contribution beyond, I think, other alternatives.

There's no question that the striving, the stuff that you got out of [sports]. The depending on someone right beside you. Sitting here and calling on yourself when you're tired or getting through something painful, watching your teammates do the same. Everybody feels good when you first walk out there.

It's the premium time, the fourth quarter. October, November, December and now, if you will, going over into the first quarter in January. But really, football, that's when the interest is in the game.

I promise you that during my life, I was more concerned about not letting people down, about doing my part, than I was ever into what it did for me. That is one of the great things about sports, and frankly, football really does instill that.

We are continuing to look for ways that we can do something that's good for both of us. Good for both of us being the Cowboys relative to relief as to our cap management and good for him that would maybe be some pluses for him on his contract.

The part of football you don't see with all the buddies I ever had, we might have gone out and thrown some passes, but we never went out to knock the hell out of each other just to do it. You do that when the time comes to push the ball downfield or keep it from going down the field. That's why I think football has a great place.